How to Expect the Unexpected

Reviews

“In this smart study… The survey of the mind’s biases intrigues, and the author excels at demonstrating their real-world effects. … It’s a safe bet that readers will take to this.”—Publishers Weekly “A vivid, wide-ranging, and delightful guide to the light and the dark side of prediction.” —Tim Harford, bestselling author of The Data Detective “Fascinating and fun. From the everyday to global challenges, Kit Yates explores how changing your mind - so often thought to be a weakness - is the best life skill we can all acquire. A brilliant book.” —Alice Roberts, University of Birmingham “Yates’ tour of the predictions business covers much interesting ground, which he tills with an entertaining sense of humor.”—Kirkus "Yates is a pro at presenting maths in simple terms… these mathematical principles help make the book compelling to read.”—Physics World “Kit Yates presents math as it should be taught to everyone: accessible, fun, stimulating, and deeply relevant to our lives. Spend some time with this book and you're likely to make better judgements and decisions, to see through the charlatans and snake-oil salespeople—and perhaps even to fool yourself a little less.” —Philip Ball, author of the award-winning Critical Mass “Yates' writing is a beacon of clarity sorely needed in a complicated and confusing world. How do we overcome our biases, understand coincidences or tackle the unreliability of our intuition? With bountiful familiar examples, he effortlessly overturns so many of our deep-rooted wrong-headed notions gently and persuasively. I'll be quoting from this book."—Jim Al-Khalili, author of The World According to Physics “Yates shows how math is the beating heart of so much of modern life.” —Marcus du Sautoy, author of Thinking Better Expand reviews